Just as Soylent Green Is People, CandianSolar is Chinese. This company is straight outta Suzhou.
“Most investors believe this is a Canadian company. Well, that isn’t 100% true. Let me put it this way: Canadian Solar is a Chinese solar company with deep roots in the Canadian solar market.”
So why don’t they call themselves ChineseSolar?
Oh, because of the thing, that’s right, I remember now.
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OK fine.
This was the scene today in front of the State Building in Civic Center. So pretty soon, those orange-tinted night shots you’ve been taking on the streets of San Francisco will be history.
Why? ‘Cause Uncle Sucker is paying the City and County of San Francisco money to put in cooler LED lighting. That means that your night-time cell phone shots will look much better.
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Hurray!
Our Civic Center Sustainability District up close.
See? Windmills, solar panels and LED streetlights:
Enjoy.
Remember this mystery from yesterday? Well, turns out it’s just the Civic Center Sustainability District getting started.
Here it is, a “vertical axis wind turbine.” Or, a windmill, your choice:
All the deets, after the jump
That big residential solar project in the Lower Haight / Western Addition / Hayes Valley from SunWheel Energy Partners just went live. The juice, she is flowing.
See all the deets in this 15 minute video - it’s just like being there.
San Francisco Assessor-Recorder Phil “The Thrill” Ting was there for the ribbon-cutting…
…as was District 5 Supervisor Ross “The Boss” Mirkarimi:
San Francisco Affordable Housing Sites Power On Solar Energy
Federal, State and Local Officials, Site Residents and Community Members Celebrate Green Energy and New Jobs at Western Addition Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
San Francisco, CA, January 26, 2010 – On Monday, January 25, 2010, Sunwheel Energy Partners, which provides turnkey solar energy systems for urban and community partners, celebrated the commissioning of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems at three affordable housing community sites in San Francisco’s Western Addition and Hayes Valley neighborhoods — bringing solar power, green jobs and financial relief to residents and owners. The ribbon cutting ceremony at Plaza East Apartments was widely attended by a notable group of federal, state and local officials as well as the site’s residents and community members who were hired to install the solar panels.
Dignitaries in attendance included Henry Alvarez, Executive Director, San Francisco Housing Authority; Timothy Alan Simon, CPUC Commissioner; Phil Ting, SF Assessor-Recorder; David Rubin, Director of Service Analysis, PG&E; Michael Carlin, SFPUC Deputy General Manager; Neola Gans, Vice President, SF Housing Authority Commission; Caroline Krewson, Deputy Regional Director, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; Stephen Schneller, Director, San Francisco Office of Public Housing; Ross Mirkarimi, San Francisco Supervisor; and representatives of Speaker Nancy Pelosi and U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer’s offices. Senator Mark Leno issued a proclamation commending the site.
Even more deets, after the jump
Well, read all about it. Rooftop solar is coming to the Hayes Valley North, and South, and Plaza East housing projects in the greater Western Addition / Lower Haight area.
The Future is Now. Click to expand:
The mise-en-scene this morning, including Mayor Gavin Newsom, Rev. Amos Brown, Public Utilities Commission Director Ed Harrington, District 8 Supervisor hopeful Laura Spanjian, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Deputy District Director Melanie Nutter. The roof you can see upper left is slated for a panel or two:
Mr. Mayor was going on about San Francisco being number one in California rooftop photovoltaic solar installations on a per capita basis - his statement was just one caveat shy of being operational. It would appear the rich yuppies and less-rich granolas of ridiculously-named Nevada City, California, to name just one city, have erected a ginourmous number of rooftop panels. Maybe he meant San Francisco County. Oh, here’s the caveat – “large” city. Doesn’t match what he was actually saying today, but that fixes the error. In front of a sample PV panel and betwixt MLK and Barack Obama from somebody’s bedroom window across the street:
So how much is “365 kw?” Well, I’m not sure what that figure means. It could mean maximum power in ideal conditions. You’ll just have to do an install and then measure what you get on a sunny day, ’cause every installation of PV is unique. If it helps to compare, the 5.4 litre engine from a used Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 can put out more power than what the solar panels at Hayes Valley North, and South, and Plaza East together will be capable of producing at maximum.
(In other vehicular matters, no, the mayor’s SUV wasn’t sitting idling during the entire event - that’s an improvement.)
And in other vehicular matters once again, this was the scene at the end of the block where the news conference was held. Scratch one laptop. Is it being fenced right now? Probably.
Oh well.
The Fixing Broken Windows theory in action.
Anywho, el comunicado de prensa de hoy:
MAYOR NEWSOM ANNOUNCES FIRST SOLAR INSTALLATIONS AT S.F. PUBLIC HOUSING SITES; CREATES GREEN-COLLAR JOBS
Newsom also announces 450% increase in San Francisco solar applications since inception of solar rebate program
More deets after the jump.
Now back in the day, rooftop solar meant routing black water pipes up there, so you could heat your water for free. High tech photovoltaic panels, where sunlight converts directly to electricity, were reserved for astronauts ‘n stuff.
But these days, you can fork over $27,000 for a 3 KW system and you’ll end up making your own electricity with something like this on your pointy, pointy roof.
As seen on Ashbury Street near Haight in sometimes sunny San Francisco:
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This project doesn’t make sense without the money from the Feds.
This project doesn’t make sense WITH money from the Feds.
What makes this project “front loaded” is that the primary benefit appears to be the ability to distribute the press release below today, as opposed to a few months or years from now. Enjoy.
Somewhere under all that soup below Sutro Tower will go the photovoltaic panels:
Supervisor Chris Daly, who favored a second look at the details this scheme, says that he won’t come back eight years from now to say “I told you so.”
But don’t hold him to that come 2017.
Oh well.
The proposed Sunset Reservoir Solar Project from Recurrent Energy is in the news lately. I understand how photovoltaic cells can work even in the fog, but fog can have a big impact on solar electric production, right? Does our unique climate play a role in the decision of where to build this thing?
Now of course, our cemeteries are outside the city limits, as is SFO for that matter. Is this public/private partnership is the best we can come up with?
The dreary Sunset District, yesterday, 1:00 PM:
Let’s see if the FAQ helps:
Why doesn’t the City build the system?
Pending Board of Supervisors approval in first quarter of 2009, the project would be on track to begin construction in the summer of 2009 and complete in first quarter of 2010.
Is that a responsive answer?
Why was this location selected?
This location was chosen because it is one of the largest reservoirs and rooftops owned by the city. The recent seismic upgrade of the roof over the Sunset Reservoir’s north basin makes it strong enough for the installation of solar panels. While located in the Sunset district, the solar resource is still very good, on average only 15% lower than the sunniest areas of the City.
Again, is that a responsive answer? We have to build solar on rooftops and reservoirs because…why?
Why does the system need to be located within the city?
The City needs electricity generated inside San Francisco. Starting in 1998, the City made efforts to shutter old polluting power plants within San Francisco. In 2006, Hunter’s Point power plant was permanently closed and subsequently demolished. The Potrero Hill power plant was also under discussion for closure, but the California Independent System Operator (Cal-ISO) has determined that the Potrero Hills [yes, "Hills" - howdy stranger, welcome to San Francisco!] power plant cannot be decommissioned until new transmission or generation is added within San Francisco. This project will add much needed generation to the City of San Francisco.
So this tiny little project, which will produce something like 1% of the juice generated by the Mirant plant, is a kind of substitute for the Mirant plant? Really?
Perhaps the lowest bidder didn’t come in low enough?
Well, local utility PG&E (remember writing out Pigs, Giraffes and Elephants as the payee when making your monthly payment, back when we still used checks? Good times) had a big, big news conference today about solar power projects – that should help them meet state requirements regarding renewable energy.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger approves of this trend, anyway. And it’s a shot in the arm for the photovoltaics (PV) industry. Read on for more deets and selected quotes.
Here’s what it looked like this morning, with PG&E Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer and President Peter Darbee and Senior Vice President of Energy Procurement Fong Wan making the announcement:
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PG&E Launches 500 Megawatt Solar Power Initiative
Utility-Owned and Independent Projects Would Speed Customer Access to Cleaner Energy
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) today announced plans for a five-year program to develop up to 500 megawatts (MW) of clean solar photovoltaic (PV) power in its northern and central California service area, one of the largest undertakings of its kind in the country.
The proposed program consists of up to 250 MW of utility-owned PV generation – PG&E’s first direct investment in renewable generation in over a decade – and an additional 250 MW to be built and owned by independent developers under a streamlined regulatory process. PG&E is submitting its plan today to the California Public Utilities Commission for approval, which could come later this year.
If all projects are up and running by 2015, they are expected to deliver more than 1,000 gigawatt hours of power each year, equal to the annual consumption of about 150,000 average homes. In all, this program would meet over 1.3 percent of PG&E’s electric demand.
“I applaud PG&E for its commitment to making a direct investment in clean, renewable solar energy generation that will eventually power tens of thousands of California homes,” said Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. “By bringing renewables online as quickly as possible and advancing the development of green technologies, this effort will advance California’s aggressive push to meet our long-term energy and climate change goals while keeping California on the leading edge of this booming industry.”
“This program represents an unprecedented commitment of our capital and expertise to speed the delivery of clean, renewable energy to our customers,” said PG&E CEO and President Peter Darbee. “With many renewable-energy projects delayed, we can’t afford business as usual when it comes to protecting the environment and meeting our customers’ expectations.”
More deets after the jump
